Environmental Protection Agency

News about Environmental Protection Agency, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.

Chronology of Coverage

Mar. 28, 2015

World Health Organization's declaration that glyphosate, active ingredient in Monsanto weed killer Roundup, likely causes cancer in humans shows how scientific data can be interpreted differently by different organizations; agency's research was in part based on study used by Environmental Protection Agency to reverse itself and approve use of Roundup, six years after using same study to suggest that it may cause cancer. MORE

Mar. 26, 2015

Supreme Court appears split in case over whether Environmental Protection Agency violated Clean Air Act; lawyers for industry groups and 20 states say EPA rules setting limits on power plant emissions did not consider high costs they would cause; agency did not undertake cost-benefit analysis. MORE

Mar. 23, 2015

Editorial examines Supreme Court case in which coal industry is challenging the Environmental Protection Agency's standing to regulate mercury emissions under the Clean Air Act; dismisses industry's assertion that EPA must defer to business cost of regulations; argues costs are balanced by economic benefits, including medical costs, to say nothing of human toll should they be scaled back. MORE

Mar. 20, 2015

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has started aggressive campaign to block Pres Obama’s climate agenda by reaching out to governors with legal blueprint on how they can stop rules in their states; his campaign, focused far beyond his official reach, is geared at halting set of Environmental Protection Agency rules requiring states to cut carbon pollution coal-fired power plants. MORE

Feb. 24, 2015

Environmental Protection Agency says in 2016 it will tighten guidelines for test that automakers use in calculating mileage advertised to consumers; agency has been imposing penalties on those that overstate their fuel economy ratings; stricter rules could result in lower fuel economy ratings if car makers have not previously fully complied with test. MORE

Feb. 4, 2015

Environmental Protection Agency review of Keystone XL pipeline finds that drop in global oil prices may result in more development of Canadian oil sands, activity likely to contribute to increased greenhouse has emissions; study may lead Pres Obama to conclude that pipeline fails his proposed climate change regulations. MORE

Jan. 8, 2015

Environmental Protection Agency will impose federal 'model rule' on states that do not submit plans for carbon emissions reduction under new climate change regulations; Republicans assail proposed rules and governors of some states that rely heavily on coal mining are suing EPA over regulations. MORE

Dec. 26, 2014

Environmental Protection Agency is attempting to finish regulation governing carbon emissions from power plants, and how to treat existing nuclear power plants is difficult and complicated; its plan gives odd mathematical formula for evaluating plants' contribution to emissions; many plants could be shut down because cheap natural gas renders their reactors uncompetitive. MORE

Dec. 20, 2014

Environmental Protection Agency announces first federal guidelines for management and disposal of coal ash from power plants to protect water supply; some environmentalists say new regulations are too lax. MORE

Nov. 28, 2014

Paul Krugman Op-Ed column dismisses complaints from Republicans about proposed Environmental Protection Agency rules designed to curb emissions of ozone; examines why polluters can always count on Republican support to continue polluting; posits that rising inequality is in part responsible for partisan divide on environmentalism. MORE

Nov. 27, 2014

News analysis: Pres Obama may leave office with far-reaching environmental legacy without having passed single major environmental law; has issued series of landmark regulations based on broad powers of Clean Air Act, which was designed in 1970 to give Environmental Protection Agency great flexibility. MORE

Nov. 26, 2014

Environmental Protection Agency is poised to release sweeping, contentious and long-delayed environmental regulation to curb emissions of ozone; oversight is aimed at smog from nation's power plants and factories and will lower current threshold for ozone pollution from 75 parts per billion to range of 65 to 70 parts per billion. MORE

Nov. 26, 2014

Supreme Court will hear arguments over limits set by Environmental Protection Agency on emissions of mercury and other toxic pollutants from coal-fired power plants. MORE

Nov. 22, 2014

Environmental Protection Agency says it has been unable to decide on rule setting levels for amount of biofuel it will require to be blended into conventional vehicle fuels. MORE

Nov. 21, 2014

Investigation by watchdog group State Authorities Budget Office reveals that New York State officials pushed through $511 million loan from federal clean-water funds for construction of new Tappan Zee Bridge; approval came despite Environmental Protection Agency rejection of most of the loan request because money was to be used for construction rather than environmental purposes. MORE

Nov. 11, 2014

Washington Memo; new Republican Congress aims to use its powers to undermine ambitious Environmental Protection Agency regulations aimed at curbing carbon pollution; GOP also now has greater leverage in pushing Pres Obama to approve Keystone XL pipeline. MORE

Oct. 16, 2014

Environmental Protection Agency has approved new version of Enlist Duo, popular weed killer, to be used on genetically modified corn and soybeans. MORE

Sep. 25, 2014

Environmental Protection Agency issues new blueprint for its efforts to restore the Great Lakes, including plans to clean up 10 contaminated rivers and harbors and attack poisonous algae blooms that coat parts of three lakes each summer. MORE

Sep. 17, 2014

Environmental Protection Agency rejects most of New York State's request for $511 million low-interest loan to help pay for new Tappan Zee Bridge, dealing significant blow to Gov Andrew M Cuomo's plan; agency says state had planned to use nearly all of money for construction, rather than required purpose of enhancing environment. MORE

Sep. 14, 2014

Fewer new cars are incurring gas-guzzler penalties from Environmental Protection Agency, despite increasingly challenging revisions to fuel-economy standards; trend is largely the result of technology developments by automakers, including hybrid powertrains, smaller turbocharged engines, advanced transmissions and lightweight structures. MORE

Aug. 2, 2014

Twelve states, led by West Virginia, file lawsuit against Obama administration in effort to block Environmental Protection Agency proposal to regulate coal-fired power plans as way to curb climate change; proposal is being attacked as 'war on coal,' that will lead to unnecessary shut down of plants and job losses. MORE

Jul. 31, 2014

Evangelical and other conservative religious leaders, defying Republican orthodoxy, reassert support for Pres Obama's environmental policies at public hearings on proposed Environmental Protection Agency rules; measures would cut carbon pollution from power plants. MORE

Jul. 30, 2014

White House Council of Economic Advisers releases analysis asserting that failing to adequately reduce carbon pollution that contributes to climate change could cost United States economy $150 billion a year; is part of White House’s effort to increase public support for Pres Obama’s climate-change agenda, chiefly an Environmental Protection Agency proposal targeting coal-fired power plants. MORE

Jul. 21, 2014

Rep Robert Latta, Republican whose Ohio district is home to several Whirlpool factories, introduces bill that would ban class-action lawsuits against companies that claim Energy Star label results, but do not deliver on such claims; suggests that if Environmental Protection Agency could determine a resolution like reimbursing consumers for money lost because of misleading claims, lawsuits should be disallowed; critics hold ban would leave consumers unprotected. MORE

Jul. 7, 2014

Team of environmentalists, headed by lawyers David Doniger and David Hawkins and climate scientist Daniel Lashof, at the Natural Resources Defense Council created carbon-emissions proposal that heavily influenced Obama administration's new Environmental Protection Agency rule; say organization followed a strategy used by the oil industry during the Bush administration. MORE

Jun. 24, 2014

Supreme Court largely upholds Environmental Protection Agency's ability to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from stationary sources like power plants, marking a big win for environmentalists; ruling comes even as court criticizes what it calls Obama administration's overreaching; combative tone of decision, along with court's rejection of one of EPA's rationales for regulations, suggests rocky road ahead for other initiatives to reduce carbon emissions. MORE

Jun. 24, 2014

Editorial praises Supreme Court for its affirmation of Environmental Protection Agency's power to regulate greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act; argues that case, brought by coalition of business interests and states, preserves government's ability to confront global warming while also demonstrating Congress's persistent failure to update the law to meet modern needs. MORE

Jun. 10, 2014

Democrats in several states with competitive Senate races say growing public support for action to curb climate change, including Environmental Protection Agency plan to reduce power-plant carbon emissions, could help party in midterm elections; contend that support, coupled with Republican candidates' contrary views on climate change, will make party stronger heading into 2016 presidential election. MORE

Jun. 8, 2014

Coal mining region of eastern Kentucky, despite cries of a 'war on coal' that echo through state's mining country, is already taking hardheaded steps toward a post-coal economy; Environmental Protection Agency is offering wide flexibility to state to meet its carbon emissions requirement. MORE

Jun. 8, 2014

Thomas L Friedman Op-Ed column offers highlights of interview he conducted with Pres Obama regarding climate change; notes that interview was conducted as Obama administration was drawing up new Environmental Protection Agency rules to curb carbon emissions from power plants. MORE

Jun. 6, 2014

Paul Krugman Op-Ed column contends right-wing outrage over Environmental Protection Agency's proposed rules on carbon emissions seem oddly muted and unfocused; holds claims that economic effects of rules will be devastating are not only wrong but inconsistent with conservative faith in the marketplace; expresses certainty that action in United States against greenhouse gas emissions would lead to corresponding action in Europe and Japan, putting further pressure on China follow. MORE

Jun. 6, 2014

The Upshot; nine Northeastern states have sharply reduced carbon output while enjoying strong economic growth under cap-and-trade program started in 2009; their experience contradicts critics of Environmental Protection Agency's requirements for power plants, who claim that forcing emissions reduction will curtail economic growth. MORE

Jun. 3, 2014

Pres Obama’s new plan to fight climate change depends heavily on states’ devising individual approaches to meeting goals set in the nation’s capital, strategy similar to the one he used to expand health care, often with rocky results; plan, largely welcomed by environmentalists, has generated a torrent of criticism from industry, coal-state lawmakers from both parties and Republican leaders who call it a job-killer that will raise utility costs. MORE

Jun. 3, 2014

Editorial welcomes Obama administration's plan, written by the Environmental Protection Agency, to reduce greenhouse emissions from power plants by 30 percent by 2030; holds jobs lost to power plant closures will be replaced over time by new opportunities in retrofitting and alternative energy; contends rule, if it survives, will be a major part of Pres Obama's environmental legacy. MORE

Jun. 3, 2014

Proposed carbon pollution rules by Environmental Protection Agency will help spur natural gas industry and renewable energy like wind and solar power, but executives and analysts say nation's reliance on coal will not disappear anytime soon; reductions in coal use will come from relying more on other power sources and making structures more efficient, but both are already happening. MORE

Jun. 2, 2014

Obama administration will unveil proposed Environmental Protection Agency regulation to cut carbon pollution from nation's power plants 30 percent from 2005 levels by 2030, one of strongest actions ever taken by US government to fight climate change; proposal could lead to closure of hundreds of coal-fired power plants, largest source of carbon pollution in nation, if it survives expected onslaught of legal and legislative attacks. MORE

May. 30, 2014

Paul Krugman Op-Ed column notes anti-environmental groups are already predicting new rules from Environmental Protection Agency to limit global warming will be very costly and will spell economic doom; contends such conclusions are wrong; examines Chamber of Commerce report that tried to convey impression new rules would create havoc, but actually illustrates how costs of implementation would be remarkably small. MORE

May. 29, 2014

Pres Obama plans to unveil new regulation, written by Environmental Protection Agency, that uses his executive authority to cut carbon emissions from nation's coal-fired power plants by up to 20 percent and force industry to pay for pollution it creates through cap-and-trade programs across country; would be strongest action ever taken by an American president to tackle climate change and could become a defining element of Obama's legacy. MORE

May. 27, 2014

Pres Obama will use his executive authority under 1970 Clean Air Act to issue an Environmental Protection Agency regulation targeted at coal-fired power plants, nation's largest source of carbon pollution; Obama tried, without success, to move a climate change bill through Congress in his first term, and such legislation would now stand no chance of getting past the resistance of Republican lawmakers who question the science of climate change. MORE

May. 23, 2014

Environmental Protection Agency says it has reached an enforceable deal with Duke Energy to clean up its mess from a huge coal ash spill into the Dan River that coated 70 miles of river in North Carolina and Virginia with toxic sludge. MORE

May. 9, 2014

Environmental Protection Agency designates industrial area in Ridgewood section of Queens as federal Superfund site after finding elevated radioactivity levels stemming from thorium dumped there by defunct Wolff-Alport Chemical Company over 60 years ago. MORE

Apr. 30, 2014

Supreme Court upholds authority of the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate smog from coal plants that drifts across state lines; 6-to-2 ruling bolsters series of new regulations aimed at cutting pollution from coal-fired power plants, centerpiece of Pres Obama's environmental agenda. MORE

Apr. 30, 2014

Editorial Keeping Track column praises Supreme Court for upholding authority of Environmental Protection Agency to reduce harmful air pollution that crosses state lines; criticizes Obama administration for its lack of transparency on its secret drone-strike program, latest example of which is is defeat of Senate proposal that would require annual report on number of casualties from drone attacks. MORE

Apr. 16, 2014

Editorial underscores challenge Environmental Protection Agency faces with its proposed cleanup plan for fetid eight-mile stretch of the Passaic River in New Jersey; contends ambitious plan is long overdue; asserts that companies who are tasked with funding the plan should face up to their full responsibilities. MORE

Apr. 3, 2014

Environmental Protection Agency inspector general's report finds that the agency failed to consistently disclose health risks, including possible cancer risks, to research study participants who were exposed to dangerous air pollutants. MORE

Mar. 27, 2014

Editorial warns Kentucky Sen Mitch McConnell's resolution to block Environmental Protection Agency proposal to set limits on greenhouse gas emissions from coal plants could be used to derail federal rule-making on number of issues; holds McConnell's action, even if it fails, dangerously escalates antiregulatory fervor; urges Democrats to shut down McConnell's effort. MORE

Mar. 22, 2014

Gina McCarthy, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, faces 20 coal miners, union workers and local politicians in North Dakota, who are deeply suspicious of the new climate change regulations; Obama administration hopes the regulations will help save the planet, but North Dakotans say the rules will put coal and their livelihoods at risk. MORE

Mar. 22, 2014

Environmental Protection Agency will join North Carolina regulators in addressing potential violations of the Clean Water Act at Duke Energy power plants, including a massive spill of toxic coal ash in the Dan River. MORE

Mar. 14, 2014

BP, four years removed from 2010 Deepwater Horizon rig explosion, reaches agreement with Environmental Protection Agency to seek new oil leases in Gulf of Mexico; bids are allowed only as long as company passes muster on ethics, corporate governance and safety procedures; agreement means hundreds of millions of dollars in new business for company. MORE

Lawyers for industry groups and some 20 states told the justices that Environmental Protection Agency regulations that set limits on emissions from power plants had failed to take account of the punishing costs they would impose.

Multimedia

Devon Energy’s lawyers and lobbyists drafted letters and provided them to Attorney General Scott Pruitt to send to the Environmental Protection Agency, the Interior Department and even President Obama directly. Most of those letters were signed by Mr. Pruitt and sent with few changes. Here is one example, obtained through open-records requests.

Devon Energy of Oklahoma since 2011 has secretly played a major role in drafting comment letters sent by Attorney General Scott Pruitt of Oklahoma to President Obama, Interior Secretary Sally Jewell and Lisa P. Jackson, the former administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency — letters that ask for actions that could help increase the company’s profits. Here is a look at those secret conversations.